The present invention relates to the field of farrier, the art and science of horseshoeing, and more particularly, to cleats for use with horseshoes.
The sport of horseracing has been around for centuries, and with its development, inventions have arisen related to improving a horse's racing performance. One such area of improvement involves the development of horseshoes specifically designed for racing horses. Racing horseshoes typically are made of steel or aluminum, such as a lightweight aluminum alloy, and are often referred to as racing plates. A typical racing plate is affixed to a horse's hoof by driving nails through holes in the racing plate and into the horse's hoof. The underside of the racing plate also typically has an arcuate blade located near the curved middle portion of the horseshoe. This blade provides some additional traction near the front or "toe" portion of the hoof.
For horses that run on muddy surfaces or on grass, racing plates typically do not provide sufficient traction. As a result, it is desirable to use additional traction devices affixed to the bottom of the horseshoes.
As a racing horse's hoof strikes the track's surface, it typically slides forward slightly. Further, a horse's hoof tends to slide sideways slightly due to centrifugal force, particularly when the horse is rounding a turn. A driving hoof further loses traction and slides backwards slightly as the hoof reaches the end of its stride. These sliding movements of a horse's hoof, particularly the lateral movements, are a major source of equine injury to the horse's lower leg or ankle, including ligament and cartilage damage.
In an attempt to reduce slippage, and as a result improve the horse's racing performance and reduce the likelihood of injury, several horseshoes have adopted traction features on the underside of the horseshoe. For example, aluminum alloy racing plates may have a pattern of steel calks or cleats affixed to the underside of the horseshoe to help provide additional traction. These racing plates typically have the calks cast in place or firmly affixed to the shoe and typically require the removal of the horseshoe in order to change the calks.
Unfortunately, the present array of racing horseshoe cleats or calks are deficient in any of a number of areas. For example, some calks are designed primarily for improved anterior to posterior traction without providing improved lateral traction or stability. Some calks can be attached to the racing plate in only a limited number of positions, or only a single position. Other calks only can be removed with the removal of the horseshoe. Still others are made from materials that add an undesirable amount of extra weight to the horseshoe. Still others, such as calks commonly referred to as jar calks, when placed on a horse's hoof that is more rounded cause the leg to twist if the hoof lands other than flat.